Have you ever wondered about those people who seem to get the blessing all the while they’re complaining and grumbling? I was thinking about this as I was doing housework on a rainy day. The verse from Matthew 5:45 that says,  “…He causes His sun to rise on {the} evil and {the} good, and sends rain on {the} righteous and {the} unrighteous.” Sun and rain, in their seasons are blessings. Some blessings, in various forms, are given to all simply because our good God has prescribed it. But sun and rain out of season (or so it seems to us) can cause grief and pain. My reflecting brought to mind a book from the Old Testament: Job. If it EVER rained torrents or scorched a person to the bone, it was Job.

Job was described as blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. He was known as the greatest of all the men of the east. What a guy! He had numerous sheep, camels, oxen, and donkeys. A host of servants.  Ten children whom he loved and prayed for continually. And one wife.
Satan apparently chose this blameless man to prove that God was not worthy to be worshipped when all earthly blessings were stripped away. But in reality God selected Job to show that in spite of flood and famine, illness and loss, a humble individual could still praise his God.

And, so it began. One by one, all Job possessed and loved were eventually taken away, even his health. Except for his wife.

Mrs. Job had only one line in this drama and instead of uttering words of wisdom and hope she says the worst thing one could say to someone in Job’s situation. “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” Thanks sweetheart. What a killer bedside manner! No doubt Mrs. Job had observed the life of praise her husband exemplified day in and day out. True, she also suffered the loss of her children as well as the rest of their earthly riches. Sun and rain came for both her and her husband and her response revealed what was truly in her heart.

Integrity is easily displayed when life’s good. It’s the testing of integrity that determines its genuine quality. Though Job struggled to understand why he suffered at every turn, he clung to the one absolute truth that kept him drawing breath, "As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God;” (Job 19:25-26) Job came to a point of humility saying, "I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You; therefore I retract, And I repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:5-6)

Job’s intense suffering finally came to an end. God restored his fortune twice fold. He fathered 10 more children: seven boys and three beautiful girls. He lived another 140 years, seeing his sons and grandsons. There’s no mention of a new wife, so Mrs. Job shares in the restored blessing, as well. But, where is her proclamation of faith and confession? Her life had its ups and downs; sunshine and rain, just as her husband’s. How did she fare in her relationship with the Lord? Her terse comment to her boil-ridden hubby is the last we ever hear of her. Truly a sad and faithless epitaph to have on one’s gravestone.

On the other hand, Job’s righteous testimony and tenacious trust in God stood the test of time, serving as a beacon of hope to countless generations.  He understood that the sunshine and rain would cease, but God is faithful and true. Job’s hope and joy was anchored in the Lord of Life, enabling him to praise his Redeemer through the rain.
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Are you going through a crisis right now? If your response is more like Job’s, be blessed in the knowledge that you are leaving a legacy of praise that will impact generations yet to come. If your response is more like Mrs. Job, pray that the Lord would give you eyes to see His goodness in the rainy times as well as the sun-laden days. Humility is the key to going through difficult times because God has promised to be with the humble in spirit. James 4:6 reminds us that “… He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE."

“…remember First Thessalonians five twenty-four, faithful is He who calls you and He also will bring it to pass. God bless your day!” Click go. Pod down. Push off button. Slip off headphones and do happy dance and say, “Thank you, Lord!” Another shift down as a part-time announcer at WBYN FM/1075Alive.

I sometimes wish I could tell my listeners the full story of how my pastor hubby and I ended up in Southeastern Pennsylvania. How we knew it was God leading us to move from our grown children and grandchildren in the Midwest to serve two church plants. How God has called me to a deeper level of faithfulness in my walk with Him. How He has proved His faithfulness to me more times in the past 3 and a half years than the thirty previous. But that will have to wait. I WILL share how I started in radio…

In the Open Bible’s Cyclopedia, faithfulness is defined as “making faith a living reality in one’s life.”

Walking by faith. Standing by faith. Resting in faith. Responding in faith.

Faith, divinely bestowed and abundantly supplied, given when we enter our new life in Christ. It’s that spiritual muscle uniting us to the Lord that grows stronger when tested and atrophies when neglected. Faith is trust in action; hope made evident.

Faith walks you through open doors when you could easily walk right past.

It’s that invisible nudge that says “Go ahead” when you get a phone call out of the blue asking if you’d be interested in working at a Christian radio station.

BUT LORD....        
I have no experience in radio. I’ve never done it before. I’m not ready for this.
                               
I need to help my husband build two churches. How can I fit it into my schedule?

I must build up our ministry to women from scratch. How will I keep up with the needs of both responsibilities?

I was sure the Lord hadn’t realized these things. I’d just have to say, “No. I’m sorry. I’m not interested in being stretched out of my comfort zone or learn new things or speak only when I have something encouraging to say.”

“Are you finished?” asks the Lord.

“I think so,” I reply.

“What you don’t seem to understand is this is the next step in your faith training. Though you have no experience in radio, you DO have experience in speaking before groups of many sizes. Besides, I have someone lined up ready to teach you what you’ll need to know. The churches will be built by My Spirit working through the faithful people in them as they are aided and instructed by your husband and yourself. The women’s ministry will be enhanced as you learn to say only what is needful and direct them to come to My Word for Living Water and daily manna. My Ways of training and preparation are higher than your ways. Trust Me to do it.”

Faithful is He who calls me. Faithful to build upon faith lessons from the past to use as foundation stones for my future. Our Faithful God nudges and leads and guides us in the call to which we’ve been called: to be a faithful people broadcasting God’s faithfulness to the world.
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Has Faith nudged you towards an open door and you determinedly walked right past with more excuses than you could count? What opportunity do you have now to exercise your faith and trust God?